UNIT IV: AUDIO

UNIT IV: Audio

OBJECTIVE: To make a three minute audio soundscapre using Adobe Audition.

GOAL:  To gain an understanding of how sound can create space, to learn how to edit and mix sounds to achieve your desired effects.

PROJECT:  The view outside my window slurs the vastness of our oceans.

PROCESS:

1.     Copy the Assets folder from HIDA shares to your external drive.

2.     Search FreeSounds and other websites for sound files to make your soundscape.  Download and add them to your Assets>Audio folder.

3.     Open Adobe Audition and go to File>Import>File and select your audio files.

4.     Double click your audio files, now in the browser (top left) to view them in the editor (top right).

5.     Go to View>Show Spectral Display to see the frequency map along side the amplitude waveform.

6.     Make any edits necessary to the file (see below).

7.     Hit the multitrack button on the top left to make a new multitrack project.  Drag your files from the browser to different audio tracks in the mixer.

8.     Save your project as an Audition Your_Name.sesx .

9.     Click and drag the files around to position them in time.  You can also trim the files by hovering over either edge of the clip and then clicking and dragging.

10.  Adjust the volume of each clip by clicking and dragging the yellow line on the clip up or down.  You can also single click to add keyframes, which can then be moved to create fade ins and outs. 

11.  Another way to create a fade in / out is to click and drag the split box in the corner of each clip. 

12.  When you are finished save your work again.  Go to File>Export>Multitrack Mixdown>Entire Session to save a copy of your soundscape as a Your_Name.wav .  Put both of your files in the HIDA shares AUDIO file. 

AUDITION EDITING TIPS:

1.     To edit a spike, use the Spectral Display and the Spot Healing Brush Tool.

2.     To edit a frequency noise, like a car horn or cell phone ring, use the Spectral Display and one of the marquee tools to select the offending noise.  Then hit the delete key and deselect. 

3.     To adjust the volume of a clip, use the Waveform Display and the Time Selection Tool to select part of the clip and adjust the volume in the HUD. 

4.     Or, go to Effects>Amplitude and Compression>Volume Envelope to get a yellow editable volume line (like in multitrack).

5.     To remove vocals from a Center Mixed file (not all recording studios center mix the vocals) go to Effects>Stereo Imagery>Center Channel Extractor.

READING:      Launching the Imagination Ch. 14 (cmap) & Digital Design Media Ch. 5

           

VOCABULARY: track, clip, volume, amplitude, frequency, key frame, limit, mix, multitrack, noise

REFERENCES:  Janett Cardiff, Laurie Anderson

GRADING:  (15pts)

Technical: (6pts) Does your mix include at least 5 different sound files?  Did you edit a flaw out of at least two of them? Does your track last three minutes?  Did you save your work in the appropriate formats?

Aesthetic: (6pts) Is there depth and richness to your soundscape?  Are there any dead spots (no noise)? Does it flow with out spikes and pops?

Conceptual: (3pts) Did you create a believable sound scape?         

NOTES:

For extra help / reference / practice, see the SoundBooth CS4 videos on the blog.